


Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree

by TheGirlWhoWearsBlack



Series: My Christmas Jukebox [8]
Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: Babysitting, Christmas, Christmas Shopping, Christmas Tree, Clumsy Spencer Reid, F/M, First Dates, Meet-Cute, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-15
Updated: 2020-12-15
Packaged: 2021-03-10 22:27:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,954
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28094637
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheGirlWhoWearsBlack/pseuds/TheGirlWhoWearsBlack
Summary: Spencer thinks that shopping for a Christmas tree is a great activity to do with Henry while babysitting him, until a beautiful distraction comes along.
Relationships: Henry LaMontagne & Spencer Reid, Spencer Reid/Reader
Series: My Christmas Jukebox [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2036053
Comments: 2
Kudos: 39





	Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! Welcome to day 8 of "My Christmas Jukebox": 12 days, 12 one shots inspired by 12 of my favorite Christmas songs. I'll be posting every other day until completed as we all get in the spirit and mood for this holiday season.
> 
> Today's shot is inspired by the song "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree" by Miley Cyrus.  
> Enjoy!

Spencer didn’t know why he kept volunteering to babysit her coworkers’ and friends’ kids when it was super clear that his skills as a babysitter weren’t exactly top notch. He loved kids, and he knew how to entertain them for the most part, it was the actually taking care of what was hard for him. 

When JJ asked him to take care of Henry as Will and her were shopping for the gifts, they would give Henry for Christmas, Spencer didn’t think twice before accepting. He was well aware of how important it was to preserve the magic and make sure that Henry didn’t see the presents Santa was going to give him until Christmas morning. 

A couple of hours wouldn’t hurt. Spencer had tons of tricks under his sleeve -literally- to keep his godson Henry busy. The problem came when JJ called letting him know that the malls were extremely crowded and that it was going to take them the entire day to finish their Christmas shopping. Spencer couldn’t say no to his best friend, so he pretended that everything was alright. When in reality he was spiraling down because nothing seemed to capture Henry’s attention for longer than fifteen minutes. 

It also did not help that he didn’t own a tv or had any Wi-Fi in his apartment. 

Just as he was surely slipping into madness, Henry provided Spencer with a great idea while simultaneously criticizing his apartment’s lack of Christmas decorations. Jackpot. Perhaps he wasn’t going to buy a crazy amount of Christmas decoration just to keep Henry busy for a whole day, but he could use a Christmas tree. 

Spencer hadn’t had a tree since his father left his mother when he was a child, and he honestly stopped caring about it. For Henry though, he would love to go to a Christmas tree farm to pick their very own tree and then make fun ornaments to hang in it. 

The place was everything you would expect from ‘Winter Wonderland’. It looked exactly like a Christmas paradise. Walking between the pines, smelling the signature scent of a Christmas tree reminded Spencer just how much she used to love putting up his tree when he was a child. Watching Henry’s face lit with amazement also filled his heart. 

“What do you think, buddy?” Spencer asked Henry. “See something that you like?”

“Don’t know, uncle ‘Pence.” 

Spencer chuckled at the apparent crisis Henry was having while choosing the perfect tree for his apartment. He analyzed the tree behind him and asked:

“This one looks good, what do you think?” 

Henry scrunched his nose and shook his head. 

“And this one? It looks full and fluffy…” 

“Nope.”

“That?” Spencer pointed at another one. “Maybe a chipmunk and his brothers live in it.”

“You’re so goofy, uncle ‘Pence.” 

The two cracked a laugh and set themselves to keep walking. Spencer spotted that one of Henry’s shoelaces was loose. He kneeled by his side in order to tie them himself.

“I can do it.” 

“Alright, then.” 

Spencer observed Henry as he attempted to tie his own shoelaces. He was so immersed in the boy’s actions that he stopped talking. In the middle of the silence, a feminine voice reached his ears. She was talking loud enough for Spencer to listen to every single word that she said:

“ _ Yes, I’m right here…Where are you...? What are you talking about...? This was you’re stupid idea…! Meanwhile, here I am freezing my butt cheeks…I don’t care, I don’t care…What does perfect mean? That’s such a subjective parameter…I don’t fucking know what that means, I’m so fucking sorry…Shit, shitty shit, tell me what you want…Fine, I’ll choose one but I hear as much as one complaint, I’m leaving _ .” 

Sure, Spencer only heard fragments of what she was saying yet he had a pretty decent idea of what she was talking about. Somehow the volume kept going higher. And now he was not the only one listening, Henry was also paying attention. Spencer looked up and realized that the girl on the phone was just a few feet away from them. 

“ _ …No, I don’t want to go to your lame ass party, I wanted to spend time with you, dingus…Alright, yeah. See ya sucker. Bye. Love you, douchebag.”  _ She finally hung up. “Holy shit, this dude is going to fucking kill me…oh my God. Have you guys been listening to everything I said?”

It took a moment before Spencer made sense that she was talking to him and Henry. The two stood up in order to get in the girl’s height. 

“We didn’t mean to…”

“Oh my God, I’m so sorry for all the cursing and bad words.” She apologized and covered her mouth embarrassed. “I didn’t know there was a kid here, if I knew I would’ve yelled at my dumb brother in the PG version.” 

Spencer couldn’t help but to laugh a little.

“Don’t worry, my mom says bad words too.” 

“She does?” She tilted her head and lowered herself a little to meet Henry’s face. Henry nodded. “Really?” This time, she addressed Spencer.

“Sometimes.”

“Oh. Anyway, I’m sorry you had to listen to all of that. It’s just that the piece of ornament that I have as a brother just stood me up and I don’t really know anything about tree farms, I never been to one before. And now I have to pick one and cut it by myself.”

“That sounds bad.”

Spencer and the girl stared at each other awkwardly in silence. He tucked his hands inside the pockets of his pants and began to swing on his feet, while she nodded almost in slow motion, all while Henry stood between them, changing his gaze from him to her, over and over again. 

“That was me attempting to ask you for help.” 

“Oh.” Spencer mumbled, then it dawned on him what her intentions were. “Oh. Yeah, sure.”

“Alright, yeah, thanks. I’m YN YLN, by the way.” 

“Spencer Reid. And this is Henry.” 

“Nice to meet you Henry.” YN stretched her hand to the young boy who took it, no hesitation. “And you, Spencer.”

Spencer began walking to avoid her trying to shake hands with him. He cleared his throat as he found himself nervous. 

“Do you have a tree in mind already?”

“Nope, I just got here.”

“Maybe we should look around for a while.” Spencer suggested. “I honestly have no idea of what I’m doing either.”

“Cool, that makes me feel less stupid.” 

The last word YN said came out with a shiver. She hugged herself and kept walking. Spencer noticed this. He knew that most men would have taken the opportunity to offer their coat or even a hug, yet he felt like he was going to freeze too if he gave YN his coat and was not bold enough to offer a hug of some sort. 

“You’re not from here.” 

“Nope.” YN answered and then realized that Spencer had not said that as a question but an observation. “Is it super obvious?”

“Well, you’re wearing proper winter attire yet you’re cold. And the way you pronounce ‘ _ been _ ’ is different from how we pronounce it here. The further north we go, the closest to ‘ _ ben _ ’ that it sounds. You emphasize the two ‘e’s, therefore, you’re from the south. Your accent isn’t heavy though, and even with the snowy and cloudy weather we have had for weeks, your skin is naturally tanned. My guess is that you’re from Florida.” 

YN raised her brows and opened her mouth with surprise. Oh no. Maybe he scared her with all of the things he said about her. YN was probably going to think that he was some sort of stalker. Spencer felt like he should’ve stayed quiet instead of letting his profiling habit show. 

“How do you know my tan isn’t fake?”

Spencer swallowed hard and cleared his throat while tucking his hair behind his ears nervously. 

“Well, your skin glows from within, normally fake tans leave the skin looking a bit matte. It’s not completely even but it isn’t streaky or patchy either. And from your hair, eye, lips and preferred jewelry I can tell your undertones, and this general tone is realistically achievable by natural means.”

“Either you’re a cosmetologist, a dermatologist, a wizard or you are just a creepily good observer” 

Spencer giggled with relief when he saw a drop of excitement and curiosity in YN’s face when he said all of that stuff to her. 

“Am I right, though?” Spencer questioned her while looking at her. 

“You are a hundred percent right, Spencer Reid.” YN nodded and huffed, still amazed about his guesses. “So, are you going to tell me which is it? Cosmetologist, dermatologist, wizard or good observer?”

“None, actually.” He answered, amusement filled his voice. “I’m actually a profiler in the FBI.” 

“A profiler? As in studying behavior to catch criminals?” 

“Yes, exactly.” 

Spencer had never met someone who wasn’t skeptical of his job at first until he met YN. Maybe it was because he showed off his skills before telling her, however it was, he was somehow grateful not to have a debate on how profiling is real and useful to catch criminals. 

“That explains a lot. Wow.” YN gasped yet again, still stunned with what happened. “It’s like meeting with a psychique only that you’re actually legit. How cool is that?” 

“Profiling is not completely infallible but we try.” He said coyly, looking down to his feet. Then, turned to face her. “And what do you do for a living, YN YLN?”

“Uhm, I’m a mixologist, which is a fancy term for bartender.” 

YN stared onto Spencer, as if she was waiting for him to say something. He didn’t know what he was supposed to say, it appeared that she was going to continue talking on her own…Maybe he had something on his face or she just remembered something important. 

“Wow, you didn’t make the face.”

“What face?” Spencer asked with his frown furrowed, not understanding what she was talking about.

“When I tell people I am a bartender they make this face like: ‘ _ bartending? Seriously? That isn’t a real job. You’re on your thirties and still do that because you’re stuck living the party life and don’t want to grow up’ blah, blah blah _ .’” YN said in a higher pitch than her regular voice, showing how annoyed she was about the prejudices that came with her line of work. “Like man, I actually went to school to do this, you know?”

“I’m sorry this happens to you. Do you work at a local bar or…?”

“Not at the moment. My brother, the doofus who stood me up today, and I are opening our own bar in February. That’s why I moved here from Florida, just as you said.” She went on to explain. Her voice went back to normal, and she relaxed again. “My brother is a chef, and he was working on a restaurant downtown and realized how inflated prices are. We want to charge less but luckily will compensate with the number of customers we will get.” 

“That is actually a gre-”

“Spencer?” YN interrupted him harshly by putting her arm in front of him.

“Yeah?”

“Where’s your son?” 

“Henry is not my son, he’s my friend’s.” Spencer answered casually until he realized that he had bigger issues. “Oh no. Henry!”

They had been so immersed in their conversation that they didn’t realize that Henry took off at some point. Spencer felt terrible, scared and worried. Working at what he did, it was absolutely impossible for his mind not to jump into the worst-case scenario. His heart raced and his hands began to shake. The Christmas tree farm was big, huge, acres of land he was not going to be able to cover by himself. 

“Henry!” YN called the boy as well. “I’m going to let someone from the staff know.”

“I have to call the police, and his mom…oh my God, JJ!” Spencer lamented himself. “Henry!” 

YN noticed that he was too affected to do something. She grabbed his hands, which made him flinch at the sudden touch, and though they were both wearing gloves, Spencer was able to feel all the calmed vibes she was trying to pass on to him. 

“Hey, calm down. We’re going to find him. He must be here somewhere; this is a pretty interesting place for a kid to want to explore. Alright?” 

“460,000 children are reported missing in the U.S. every year. 33,000 of them are victims of non-family abduction. 198, 300 get lost and injured-”

“Hey, hey, hey, stop it. Spencer, stop it.” YN placed both of her hands in each side of Spencer’s face and stared right into his eyes firmly. “Don’t go there. At least not yet. I’m going to go and alert the staff that we have a missing boy, you call his mother.”

Spencer looked back into YN’s eyes. He wasn’t sure if the way she was talking to him, the way she was looking at him, or the rhythm of her breathing was helping him to pull it together. YN nodded once, and he did too, letting her know that it was ok if she left him alone. 

While YN walked away from him to find someone from the staff, she kept calling Henry’s name, hoping to hear from him. 

He felt his hands getting shakier by the second. It was so bad that he couldn’t get his phone out of his pocket. When he finally did it, he couldn’t dial any number either. His breathing was agitated, and though he tried to remind himself to behave like he would usually handle a case at work, it was impossible for him. This was Henry he was talking about. He alternated yelling for Henry and attempting to dial a number in his phone over and over again. 

“Spencer!” YN exclaimed as she made her way back to him. “I found him, come on!” 

He didn’t think twice before following her. They jogged, almost ran to where Henry was. 

“He climbed up to one of the tall pines surrounding the farm. I think he doesn’t know how to get down.” YN explained. “I already told a guy who works here and he said he was going to get us a ladder.” 

“How did you find him?” Spencer questioned, rushing, and hitting the branches that got in his why as the forest around the farm got thicker and thicker. 

“I started yelling for him and he answered. So I followed his voice here.” 

They stopped in what appeared to be the middle of the forest. The trees surrounding them were about 15m or higher. 

“Henry!” Spencer called again.

“I’m here, uncle ‘Pence.” A little voice came from one of the tree tops. 

“How did you get there, buddy?” 

“I’m like spiderman.” 

Henry wasn’t actually that far up. He was just a couple of meters from the ground, sitting at a thick branch while hugging its trunk. The tree had small branches leading to where he was, thus it made sense that he was capable of climbing it. 

“Can you come down?” Spencer asked him. 

“Uhm, I don’t know.” 

Spencer looked at YN alarmed, asking for her help. She shrugged her shoulders as she actually didn’t know what to do. When it appeared to be that calling firemen was the most reasonable thing to do, one of the staff guys from the farm showed up with the ladder he had promised YN. 

“Henry, do you think you can come down using the ladder?” YN questioned. “Like spiderman would.”

“I can try.”

“Maybe I should go get him.” Spencer suggested. He only wanted Henry to be down in the land already.

“Don’t think so, Henry’s not a little boy, you’re not going to be able to carry him and come down that ladder at the same time.”

“Yeah, but what if he falls from the ladder?” 

“He’s not going to fall. If he was able to climb up, he can come down using a ladder.”

“If something happens to him…”

“Hi uncle ‘Pence.” 

YN and Spencer turned to the source of the voice, which was Henry standing in the middle of the two. Safe and sound. For the second time on the day, they had been too immersed in their own conversation that lost track of the kid. 

Spencer felt like he could breathe again when he saw Henry in one piece and down from the tree.

YN thanked the staff guy before he left. Spencer hugged Henry and shook his head disapproving of the recent event. 

“Don’t ever do that again, please.” He told the kid with worry in his eyes still. “And please, let’s not tell your mom. Alright?”

“Alright.” Henry nodded. “On one condition.”

“What’s that?” Spencer asked, raising his brow for dramatism. 

“We go for pie and hot cocoa.” 

Spencer chuckled and nodded as he yielded into his godson’s wishes. 

“Yay! Do you want to come?” Henry addressed YN without caring about asking Spencer first. 

YN glimpsed at Spencer in a way to ask for his approval. 

“Do you mind if I join you guys?”

Spencer was not very good with getting dates, or even talking to a woman, yet he felt comfortable having a conversation with YN. And Henry was smart enough to hand him sort of a first date with her on a silver platter. He had to promise himself that he was not going to get distracted from taking care of Henry before he answered:

“It’ll be our pleasure.” 

Song: <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KhPN9Wrwtkw>

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading!  
> Please let me know what you think <3
> 
> Remember that I'll be posting new shots every other day.  
> Have an amazing holiday season and please be safe!  
> Love, A.


End file.
